pakistan geographical review 1954 - University of the Punjab

ullock cultivation and costs are not comparable. While the calculations for'
Tractor work can be regarded as accurate, there is room for argument regarding
the actual cost of bullock cultivation. Another way of looking at it i'l as
follows: Assuming 12t acres of irrigated land per pair of bullocks and that five
operations per acre will represent the total cultivation this means 62.5 acres
ploughed or cultivated or sown per pair. It is sometimes claimed a pair of
bullocks will plough an acre a day-if so the animals are working one day in
six only. It is here assumed 1- an acre a day is normal and one day in three of
cul tivation. One acre of Kharif fodder and one acre of Rabi will be consumed
by the cat tIe and this @ Rs. 20 a Kanal = Rs. 320 per pair. Add carting and
labour in cutting and in feeding the animals we can add -/8/- per day-vor Rs. 175
per annum. Wheat Bhusa-50 mounds @ Re. 1 & 10 mds Gram bhusa @ -/8/-
Rs.55. Concentrates estimated @ 20 seers per month @ 7)-/- a mauud costs
Rs. 42. The total comes to Rs. 550 which if debited to cultivation only comes
to approximately Rs. 9 per acre, The cattle, however, do some carting of grain
from the Threshing floor to the village and some other occasional jobs, so the
figure of Rs. 8 per acre calculated
above is not far wrong.
There is no doubt that mechanisation would increase the food supply
and cash crops by at least 15%. This is an automatic increase quite apart from
better yields as pointed out above.
Cost of mechanieation.:-: Taking a unit of 300 acres for a Powerine Tractor
of 25 H.P. to 35 H. P. the total cost of mechanisation will be about Rs, 21,000
or Rs. 70 per acre. Recurring expenditure will be round Rs. 7,000 per annum.
Use of Poiaerine Tractors in uncultivated Areas.- The vast areas now
uncultivated in West Pakistan representing as it does at least 3 times the
cultivated area should nut be neglected. In most of this area the rainfall is only
5 / / per annum but even so it carries some natural bushes and grass which flourish
after rain and give considerable grazing and fuel. With a fast moving Powerine
Tractor it would be bossible to greatly increase the number of bushes and grasses
by quick cultivation and showing of seed. Plants suited to arid conditions are
available in other parts of the world and a systematic effort by Government
could d) an enormous amount in increasing our resources for feeding of sheep,
goats and camels.
References :--(1) Paper by Author at Pakistan Science Congress 1950.
(2) Tests of Tractors at Isakhel Estate, Kotsamaba [Bahawalpur
State) through courtesay of Sirdar Ghazanfarullah
Khan.
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